A fic Written on a Cold, Cold Sunday
by ManaChan
Summary: Hrm...my first fic on FF.net. Anyway, it's Ranma and Akane of course! Starts sad, but ends WAFFY.


She looked around the dark bedroom. The only sounds  
she could hear were the snoring of a sleeping  
panda...and the quieter breathing of the best martial  
artist she knew...  
  
...of a pig-headed jerk...  
  
...of a sex-changing pervert...  
  
The most annoying...  
  
...kind...  
  
...honorable...  
  
...wonderful...  
  
..._man_ she knew.  
  
And she was leaving him. She wouldn't be able to see  
his face. Hear the sounds of his fighting. The  
beautiful sound of his laugh. The look in his eyes  
when she caught him looking at her, before they were  
once again hidden inside.  
  
She was leaving him...  
  
...his warmth...  
  
...his love...  
  
...the man she loved...  
  
...more than anything...  
  
@---  
  
A fic written on a cold, cold Sunday  
  
by  
  
Mana~Chan  
  
@---  
  
Akane checked her ticket one more time. Glancing at  
the clock in her room, she decided that she would have  
to leave in ten minutes if she wanted to get to her  
plane on time.   
  
It was the middle of the night and everyone was  
sleeping. No one knew what she was planning, and for  
that she was thankful. No tears or yells or people  
trying to convince her not to leave.  
  
She snorted to herself as she checked her bags and  
purse for everything she would need to start over.   
*Eight teen years old and I still can't make my own  
decisions. It's time to take my life back.*  
  
She sighed quietly, fingering the envelope of money  
and a note to Nabiki. *You'd figure everything would  
settle down by now, but noooooooo.* Three fiancees,  
two psychos, a grip load of vengeful people, princes,  
monsters, perverts and meddlesome parents. The  
insults and thoughtless words. Hidden feelings and  
hidden pain. *Oh Ranma, did you really mean  
everything you said...?*   
  
Silently, she opened her sister's door and tip-toed to  
the desk, setting the package down, knowing that it'd  
be read first thing in the morning.  
  
At the door, she glanced over to the bed and smiled  
softly at her sister. "Goodbye Nabiki-oneechan," she  
whispered.   
  
Making her way to the next room, she snuck a light  
kiss on her oldest sister's cheek. She sent out a  
prayer for Kasumi to find the happiness she deserved.   
Again, at the door, she took one last look while  
saying softly, "Kasumi-oneechan...thank you..."  
  
Two more stops and she would be gone. Visiting her  
father first, she tucked his blanket around him  
tighter and also left a kiss on his cheek. She  
quietly apologized to him and quickly left.  
  
She paused at the last door, debating whether or not  
to go in. She took a deep breath and straightened up,  
steeling herself. The door slipped silently open, the  
sound of snoring getting louder without the barrier in  
the way.  
  
Taking a good look around the dark room, her eyes  
finally settled on the figure sleeping next to a big  
furry mass.  
  
His face was peaceful, no arrogant smile or taunting  
words. The blankets were kicked down by his knees,  
his arms akimbo.  
  
He was beautiful.  
  
As if in a trance, Akane made her way to kneel next to  
him. Her eyes never left his sleeping face. She  
wanted to memorize everything. His thick black hair,  
pigtail peeking out from under him. The slope of his  
nose, the shape of his lips. His hidden eyes...his  
mezmerising steel-blue eyes...  
  
Tears began to gather in her eyes as she reached out  
and brushed away the bangs on his brow, her hand  
trailing down to settle on his cheek.  
  
Slowly she leaned down and pressed her lips lightly to  
his, the liquid finally spilling over and running down  
both their faces. She tasted the salty tears and knew  
that Ranma was tasting them too, though he was unaware  
of it. She pulled back reluctantly, not wanting to  
leave him.  
  
She pulled up his blanket and tucked him in. Tears  
still running, she gave him another soft kiss and  
whispered her goodbye.  
  
He never saw or heard her leave...  
  
...never saw her tears...  
  
...her heart-broken face...  
  
...her goodbye...  
  
...her "I love you"...  
  
@---  
  
She was gone.  
  
He remembered waking up to crying three weeks ago. He  
ignored it, it happened so often and for the most  
trivial things.  
  
But the words that had drifted up to his ears-Akane,  
left, doesn't, found-had frozen him. He sprang from  
his futon, his blankets falling off him, breifly  
wondering how he had retained them the night before,  
and was downstairs in a flash.  
  
She left, they had told him. She didn't want to be  
found and had paid Nabiki to make sure it stayed that  
way. And Nabiki was actually going to follow her  
sister's wish, despite all the pleading and money  
being thrown at her.  
  
She was gone. He couldn't find any trace of where she  
went. He couldn't find her. He couldn't see her...  
  
...her big, beautiful brown eyes...  
  
...her tinkling laugh...  
  
...her smile...  
  
...her warm personality...  
  
...her fire...  
  
He was broken.  
  
@---  
  
Ranma stared blankly at the oknomiyaki in front of  
him. He absently picked at it with his chopsticks,  
ignoring the busy chatter of people around him.  
  
It had been nearly three months with no sign of his  
fiancee. And he was beginning to lose hope that she  
would come back.  
  
Why had she left? He had asked this question many,  
many times since she was found missing. So many  
answers, so many possibilities.  
  
The fiancees...  
  
...the fights...  
  
...the chaos...  
  
...the engagement...  
  
...himself...  
  
Kami forbid if she left because of him. Because of  
the thoughtless words he didn't mean. He tortured  
himself with guilt and self-hatred. His words coming  
back to haunt him...  
  
"Uncute tomboy!"  
  
"At least Ukyou and Shampoo can cook!"  
  
"They'll beat you in a fight anyday!"  
  
"They're cuter than you! Nicer too!"  
  
"No one needs you! You can't cook or sew. You have  
the feminity of an ox, and your martial arts skills  
suck!"  
  
"I wouldn't marry you if my life depended on it!"  
  
All said the night she left. Was that it? Did she  
really believe what he told her? She had ran out of  
the dojo in tears and was gone for hours.  
  
Hours that he didn't spend looking for her. Hours he  
had spent with two girls hanging on him, feeding him  
delicious food.  
  
She had came back and went straight to her room, not  
looking at anyone. His heart broke at the sight of  
her. He had caused this...  
  
...her drooping shoulders...  
  
...her dragging feet...  
  
...her hanging head...  
  
...her sniffles...  
  
He checked on her before heading to bed himself, and  
she was sleeping peacefully. No signs of her earlier  
depression. His heart lightened. That meant she had  
decided to be angry instead of sad.  
  
He would probably recieve a good beating in the  
morning, but he would glady take the pain if it meant  
she understood that he didn't mean it.  
  
But there was no beating. She wasn't there to give  
him one.  
  
The other girls were quiet. They saw the broken look  
in his eyes and finally admitted to themselves what  
they had been denying for so long. He wasn't  
theirs...  
  
...he didn't love them...  
  
...he loved Akane...  
  
...and now that she was gone...  
  
...he was becoming a shadow...  
  
They all felt a sense of sadness. Akane, though she  
was competition, was a good friend if they needed one.   
She was always willing to help.  
  
If it weren't for Ranma, they all could have been good  
friends. Now she was gone. They had all driven her  
off. A cloud of guilt hung over the Nermia crowd, and  
it wasn't leaving until amends were made.  
  
So they did the best they could. They watched Ranma  
slowly slip deeper and deeper into depression and knew  
that Akane wouldn't have wanted that.  
  
They talked civily and coaxed him bit by bit out of  
the stupor he had put himself in. They treated him as  
a friend, not as a lover.  
  
And it began to work. He started to come back. He  
had lost most of his openess and was more meek. His  
feelings were under a tighter control and sometimes he  
would get a haunted look in his eyes, but at least he  
was moving on.  
  
He threw himself into his school work, wanting to get  
his teaching degree. The dojo had more students that  
he was dedicated to in teaching kempo.  
  
He made friends with Ryouga, Mousse and Kuno. They no  
longer fought as they did. The boys were too happy  
that Ranma was inching his way back into his life.   
  
It was not natural seeing him so down and in the  
dumps. He was the brash one. The arrogant person  
that was bursting full of life.  
  
So they began to move on. They remembered the bright  
and firey girl and smiled at her memory. They played  
and learned and laughed and cried together, feeling a  
sense of something...or someone...missing. But they  
knew-they knew that in the end, that the hole would be  
filled once more.  
  
@---  
  
The young woman was beautiful. She glowed and  
radiated life. Men lusted for her, women envied her.   
But she was haunted. She was cold and no one got  
close.  
  
She was alone and she liked it that way.  
  
She smiled only for her children, but that was enough  
for the people around her to see that behind the walls  
she put up was a happy and loving woman waiting to  
break free. But no one could break the walls...  
  
...no one but him...  
  
...the one she had loved...  
  
...and loved still...  
  
How she missed him. She missed everything. So many  
times, she had wanted to go back. Had wanted to go  
home and see the faces she loved so dearly.  
  
Her fathers, her sisters. Aunty and Uncle. Ukyou and  
Shampoo. Mousse and Ryouga. Kuno even. But  
mostly...mostly, she wanted to see him.  
  
Five years. She had been gone for five years. Where  
was he now? What was he doing? Did he still remember  
her? Did he still think of her every day, as she did  
him? But most importantly...  
  
...Did  
  
He  
  
Love  
  
Her...  
  
Her heart added the word 'still' to her final  
question. 'Did he still lover her' it corrected.  
  
She had no choice but to agree. He had loved her  
then, she realized. As much as she had loved him.   
But it was too late by then. Three years had passed  
and she was too scared to return.   
  
What would he think if she did? He might hate  
her...but then again, he might take her in his arms  
and hold her close...   
  
...never   
  
to   
  
let   
  
go...  
  
How she longed to be with him. To see him. It didn't  
matter to her, how it was, as long as he was in her  
life. But one thing held her back. Kept her from  
returning to him. Fear. Fear of rejection, fear of  
hatred, fear of anger.  
  
If only she knew that he too, felt the same things she  
did. If only she knew that for the past five years,  
he had spent many many nights awake, wondering of what  
could have happened if only...if only...  
  
If only she knew that his heart was crying for her,  
his mind torturing him with memories. Memories of  
her...  
  
...of her smell...  
  
...of her eyes...  
  
...of her smile...  
  
...of her warmth...  
  
...of her love...  
  
Fate spun her wheel. Round and round it went,  
spinning in a rainbow of colors. Then it  
stopped...and the decision was made.  
  
@---  
  
She stood at the front of the building, waving warm  
goodbyes to the young children leaving her classroom.   
They all ran to their parents, pausing to turn around  
and wave short arms back at their beloved teacher.  
  
She smiled...  
  
...and the world was that much brighter.  
  
A frozen figure caught her eye, and her mouth opened  
in surprise.   
  
The dirty dark brown hair...  
  
...the hazel-brown eyes...  
  
...yellow tunic...  
  
...hunter-green pants...  
  
...worn traveling pack...  
  
...spotted bandanna...  
  
The name escaped her mouth in a silent whisper. And  
suddenly she was running, her eyes shinning in a way  
that no one in this town had ever seen, her smile  
brighter than ever.  
  
The two laughed happily at the gate, their chatter  
going at a rate that no one else could understand.  
  
He spun her around in circles, her feet lifted off of  
the ground. He was so happy...  
  
...happy for her...  
  
...happy for himself...  
  
...happy for her family...  
  
...happy for his friends...  
  
...happy for Ranma...  
  
Now, she could come home with him. Their circle would  
be complete once again.  
  
@---  
  
She was reluctant to return. Her doubts and fears  
thrummed in her heart, making her self-doubt return  
double-fold.  
  
But...she was going home. Home to her family...  
  
...her friends...  
  
...home to her heart...  
  
...her love...  
  
Ryouga had stayed with her for the three months it  
took to get things in order. Her resignation from the  
Kindergarten, finding a new job in Nermia and keeping  
it hush-hush.  
  
Only Nabiki knew she was coming home and had promised  
to keep her lips zipped. She was glad her imouto was  
returning, was what Akane had heard.  
  
So many things had changed while she was gone. Ryouga  
had told her everything...well...almost everything.   
  
The look of pain in her eyes when Ranma was mentioned  
was enough for Ryouga to shy away from that subject.   
It wouldn't matter anyway...she was coming home.  
  
He kept to happier news. They all got along now. No  
fights amongst the friends. Kuno and Nabiki. Kasumi  
and Toufu.  
  
Aunty had moved into the Tendo dojo. Ranma got the  
extra spare room while Aunty and Uncle stayed in one.   
Her room was left the way it was, waiting for it's  
owner to come home.  
  
@---  
  
There it was. Her house. Never had anything look so  
warm and inviting. She nervously took Ryouga's hand  
as he began to enter the gate. He squeezed her hand  
reassuringly and smiled at her.  
  
She could only manage a sick grin back.  
  
The two paused and stepped out of the way as people  
began to come out of the dojo. Akane watched silently  
as the strangers greeted Ryouga warmly, smiling to an  
occasional person who gave her a greeting.  
  
The last person came out of the smaller building, and  
stepped out of the shadows and into the bright yard.  
  
Her breath caught in her throat...  
  
...broad shoulders...  
  
......strong arms...  
  
...red Chinese shirt...  
  
...long black pig-tail...  
  
...steel-blue eyes...  
  
He was handsome.  
  
@---  
  
Ranma froze as he stepped into the warm sunlight. His  
heart sped up to an almost painful rate and it was  
hard to breath.  
  
His dreams...  
  
...lithe, slender body...  
  
...short, silky blue-black hair...  
  
...pouty red lips...  
  
...the familiar curves of her figure...  
  
...beautiful brown eyes...  
  
She was gorgeous.  
  
@---  
  
How long the two had stood looking at one another,  
neither knows. They studied each other with such  
intensity. In such detail. Neither wanted to forget  
this moment...it was just the two of them.  
  
Then his eyes fell to her hand...  
  
...which was still clutching to Ryouga's.  
  
And his broken heart. Those small broken pieces...  
  
...they broke again.  
  
Pain filled his entire being. Years of pent up  
emotion came flooding back, sweeping him away. With a  
strangled sob, he turned and fled from the scene...  
  
...of the woman he loved...  
  
...and his best friend...  
  
...in love...   
  
@---  
  
Akane choked back a sob. His eyes. They were always  
so expressive. The pain they showed...it was just as  
bad as hers. He hurt as much as she did.  
  
And she loved him too much to have him in such pain.   
So she ran after him, her tears blurring her vision.  
  
But that didn't matter. Her heart knew where he was  
going. To the bridge.  
  
It was their bridge...  
  
...their place to escape...  
  
...their place to think...  
  
...their place to talk...  
  
...their place to vent...  
  
..._their_ place...  
  
There, she found him. Crying. His knees drawn up to  
his chest, face hidden. But the shaking of his  
shoulders, his quivering pig-tail. The heart  
wrenching cries...  
  
...the heart-wrenching cries were hers.  
  
He sobbed quietly, she sobbed loudly. Different, yet  
the same all together.  
  
She collasped to her knees behind him and wrapped him  
in her warmth, her cries now muffled by the back of  
his shoulder.  
  
"Stop!" she cried, pressing into his back. "Please,  
Ranma, stop!"  
  
His crying slowed into hiccups and sniffles. He could  
feel her arms surroung him, her hands splayed across  
his chest. His shirt was being soaked by her tears  
and he felt her shaking.  
  
"I'm sorry!" He heard her sob. "I'm so sorry!" His  
heard broke even more. He untangled himself from her  
arms and stood.  
  
"Sorry?"   
  
She buried her face into her hands, still kneeling in  
front of him. He was angry...  
  
...he hated her...  
  
...her life had no meaning...  
  
...she had had hope...  
  
...but it was gone now...  
  
...because he hated her...  
  
@---  
  
He was angry. At himself. For causing her this pain.   
She shouldn't be the one suffering. Why...why  
couldn't he let her live her life happily with  
whomever she chose...?  
  
Because...  
  
...Because...  
  
...he...  
  
...loved...  
  
...her...  
  
...and she didn't know it...  
  
He had to tell her. Then maybe...maybe they could be  
friends. That much he could accept. So long as she  
was in his life, it didn't matter if she loved  
another.  
  
But she had to know first. He had to tell her.  
  
He knelt down on one knee in front of her. He reached  
up and pulled her hands away from her face, so he  
could see her beautiful eyes.  
  
She watched him as he cupped her face in his hands,  
his fingers running over the silky skin that had  
haunted him for the past five years.  
  
"There is nothing to be sorry for Akane," he said  
softly. "It's...it's okay..."  
  
"Ranma..."   
  
The name was like silk coming from her mouth. She was  
the only one who could say his name that way. Her  
hands came up to cover his.  
  
"It..." His voice began to crack. "It's alright if  
you love...love Ryouga..."  
  
She started. 'Love...Ryouga...?' "No..!" she  
started, but he stopped her, his hand covering her  
mouth.  
  
"Akane please...don't deny it..." She shook her head  
wildly at him, but he paid it no heed. "It's...it's  
alright, really. But Akane..." He took a deep breath  
and looked deeper into her eyes. "Akane...you...you  
have to know that..." His voice lowered into a  
whisper. "...that I love you Akane..."  
  
Her eyes widened and he felt her breath become erratic  
against his hand. Her heart swelled...  
  
...with hope...  
  
...hope that he meant it...  
  
...she had to know...  
  
He slowly took his hand from her mouth and sighed  
quietly, adverting his eyes. He didn't want to know  
what her reaction was. He had finally told her...  
  
...but it was too late...  
  
...he told her too late...  
  
...for she loved another...  
  
"Ranma..." she whispered. "You dummy." It was her  
turn to cup his face and look into his eyes. She saw  
the fear and defeat. He thought that she could love  
another.  
  
"You misunderstand. I don't love Ryouga..." She  
smiled softly as his eyes brightened with hope.   
  
"I meant that I'm sorry I hurt you...  
  
...I love you too, Ranma...  
  
...with all of my heart."  
  
And once again he was wrapped in her warmth. It had  
been so long. So long. He had never forgotten, never  
would forget, but this...this was so much better than  
memories.  
  
She had waited for this. She had waited for what  
seemed like her entire life. Now it was here, and she  
was in his arms...  
  
...he was in her arms...  
  
...where they belonged...  
  
From now...  
  
...until...  
  
...forever...  
  
@---  
  
Der...did I just write that...? Oh, geez...that  
was...sad...intense...aw man...this sucks. Who knew I  
had so much angst in me?! Isn't that just a  
depressing thought?  
  
Hrm...probably the snow. It has been snowing for two  
days straight now, which isn't unusual, but I was in a  
t-shirt the other day!! I mean, c'mon...t-shirt and  
then snow?? And I hate DRIVING in this stuff! Do you  
have ANY idea how slippery snow covered Colorado roads  
are?! It...it makes me want to cry when it snows coz  
I have to drive in this stuff!!  
  
But hey! It's suppose to get warm again.   
Hanyaaaaaaaan!!!  
  
Hugz n Kissez,  
  
Mana~Chan  
  
P.S.*sigh* Ranma and characters DO NOT belong to  
me. Though I wish they did. Hehehehe. Who  
wouldn't?! 


End file.
